PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Purchase College men's volleyball team put on quite the show Wednesday night at home, battling Brooklyn College to a 3-0 (25-21, 26-24 and 25-23) non-conference victory.

With first-year head coach Dean Bennett at the helm, the Panthers earned their first win of the season and advanced to 1-2 overall. The visiting Bulldogs dropped to 1-2 in defeat.

"The guys were scrappy and competed with tremendous poise from start to finish," said Bennett. "Great team win! It's the start of a new era."

Purchase opened the first set with a 5-1 run to take an early lead. Brooklyn fired back with a rally of its own, recording seven unanswered points to jump back in front, 15-13.

Back-to-back kills from Purchase seniors Chris Posillico (Saltaire, NY) and Idris Idris (Bonx, NY) tilted the score in favor of the hosts, 19-18. After a pair of Brooklyn tallies, Purchase erupted with a 6-1 run to secure the 25-21 set win.   

The Panthers kept the momentum going to start the second set. A Luca Spadinger (FR/Loudonville, NY) kill gave PC a 9-3 advantage and forced a timeout from the visitors' bench. Purchase held the lead for most of the set but with just two points shy of the win, the hosts surrendered seven points and allowed Brooklyn to tie the score at 24-apiece. A Bulldog service ace and Posillico kill saved the Panthers from the upset as they closed the set in front, 26-24. 

Both teams exchanged scores to open the third set before Brooklyn jumped ahead, 17-13, with five unanswered points. Following another lead exchange between the two teams and the possibility of a fourth set on the horizon, Purchase snapped the visitors' advantage and secured the 25-23 victory with a 4-1 run.

Posillico paced the Panthers with eight kills, 14 digs and three service aces. Idris recorded a team-leading .444 attacking percentage with five kills on nine attempts and just one error, while also finishing with 21 assists and six digs. 

Mario Olmedo (JR/East Elmhurst, NY) recorded a trio of aces and teamed up with Spadinger for one block assist. Spadinger also collected six kills and six digs, while Marcus Garguilo (SO/Port Washington, NY) finished with six kills (.118), four digs and one ace. Jasper Zeray (SO/Brooklyn, NY) rounded out the Panther lineup with nine digs and a pair of aces. 
 
Purchase will return to action on Monday (Jan. 30) at Lehman College. The non-conference matchup is slated for 7 p.m.

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